Many people talk glibly about American Power these days, whether asserting its unequaled status or lamenting its decline. Very few attempt to put hard figures on their claims, or to provide a "measure" to explain their arguments.

In this lecture, Professor Paul Kennedy offers some ideas about how one might more accurately assess the relative position of the United States in our present confused world, by looking in particular at the indices of military power, economic/productive power, and "soft" power.

Paul Kennedy

Paul Kennedy is the J. Richardson Dilworth professor of history at Yale University. Professor Kennedy is internationally known for his writings and commentaries on global political, economic, and strategic issues.
He is the author and editor of 13 books, including Strategy and Diplomacy, The Rise of the Anglo-German Antagonism, The War Plans of the Great Powers, and The Realities Behind Diplomacy.
Professor Kennedy's best-known work is The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers, which provoked an immense debate in 1988 and has been translated into more than 20 languages.

Professor Paul Kennedy discusses the rise and fall of great powers and shows how shockingly large the US share of world defense expenditures is in comparison to other nations. Which nation may rise up to challenge the US? China?